Column: Cooking with hot coals

I don’t know what it is about summer. For some reason, when the season changes and the temperature gets hot, men who have never cooked anything in the house turn into gourmet chefs when they walk out on the patio.

It doesn’t matter if there is a shiny gas grill with every new gadget conceived by the company to gather a few extra dollars or a rusted tub with a grate on top and a few charcoal briquettes inside sitting there. Meat will be cooked on it. Since the time of the caveman, any male knows food tastes better prepared outside.

Some heathens turn on their fancy grill and click a button to fire up the propane gas. They might as well stay inside and throw a hamburger in a skillet. But, many guys (and some of the ladies) still enjoy outdoor cooking over hot coals. A steak cooked on the charcoal grill tastes excellent. Even at the campgrounds we travel to, most of the guests will have some type of grill for steaks, hamburgers, brats or dogs. Some people even cook potatoes and corn on the grill. Of course, I’m different. My outdoor cooking is done over (and under!) hot coals. I do mine in a cast iron Dutch oven.

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